Are you a young graduate looking for an adventurous career in the Indian Armed Forces? The Combined Defence Services (CDS) examination is the best way to realize your dreams. It provides graduates like you with a golden opportunity to join the Indian Armed Forces as an officer. The Union Public Service Commission conducts the CDS exam twice a year. It consists of multiple stages like qualifying the written exam, getting recommendation from SSB and clearing medical tests, etc. Through the CDS exam, the UPSC selects eligible candidates for admission to the Indian Military Academy, Officers Training Academy, Indian Naval Academy and Indian Air Force Academy. After completing the required training, all candidates join their respective wings as commissioned officers. Read on to learn more about the CDS 1 2024 application form date, age limit and syllabus.

cds 2024 course

CDS-1 2024 Complete Details

You will learn more about the CDS 1 2024 exam in detail here. Read on to know the exam, application mode, exam conducting body, academies and the steps involved in the selection process.

Events	Details
Exam Name	CDS 1 2024 Exam
Academies	Indian Military Academy Officers Training Academy Indian Naval Academy Indian Air Force Academy
Courses	IMA 158th Course INA Ezhimala Course AFA Hyderabad Course OTA 121st SSC (Men) Course OTA 35th SSC (Women) Course
Exam Conducting Body	Union Public Service Commission – UPSC
Official Website	Welcome to UPSC \| UPSC
Application Mode	Online
Exam Frequency	Twice a year
Eligible Category	IMA, INA, AFA – Only Male OTA – Both Male and Female
Mode of Exam	Offline (OMR Based)
Selection Process	Written Exam SSB Interview Medical Exam

After completing your graduation, if you want to join IMA, AFA, INA, or OTA, then apply for the CDS exam. Interestingly, even if you are in the final year of your graduation program, you can apply for the CDS exam. To check all important dates regarding the CDS 1 2024 exam, check the table below.

CDS-1 2024 All Important Dates

Here are the important dates for the CDS 1 2024 exam.

Events	Dates
CDS 1 2024 registration date	20th December 2023
CDS 1 2024 application form date	20th December 2023
CDS 1 2024 application form last date	9th January 2024
CDS 1 2024 admit card release date	3 weeks before the date of the examination
CDS 1 2024 exam date	21st April 2024 (Sunday)
CDS 1 2024 written result declaration	May 2024 (Tentative)
CDS 1 2024 SSB Interview dates	To be updated soon
CDS 1 2024 final result and merit list	To be updated soon

CDS-1 2024 Age Limit

Candidates who want to apply for the CDS exam must ensure that they satisfy the CDS 1 2024 age limit. For IMA, INA, AFA and OTA (both men and women), the age limit is given below.

Indian Military Academy (IMA) – 2nd January 2001 to 1st January 2006

Indian Naval Academy (INA) – 2nd January 2001 to 1st January 2006

Air Force Academy (AFA) as on 1st January 2025 – 2nd January 2001 to 1st January 2005

(The upper age limit for candidates holding valid and current Commercial Pilot Licence issued by DGCA (India) is relaxable for up to 26 years). For such candidates, the CDS 1 2024 age limit is 2nd January 1999 to 1st January 2005

Officers Training Academy OTA (Men) – 2nd January 2000 to 1st January 2006

Officers Training Academy OTA (Women) – 2nd January 2000 to 1st January 2006

CDS-1 2024 Educational Qualification

The educational qualifications for CDS 1 2024 are different for different academies. For IMA and OTA (both men and women), candidates should graduate in any stream from a recognized University. To ensure their eligibility for INA, candidates should possess an engineering degree from a recognized university. For AFA, the combination of physics and mathematics at the 10+2 level is a must. Besides, candidates should also possess a graduation degree or preferably a Bachelor of Engineering degree.

CDS-1 2024 Syllabus

The CDS 1 2024 syllabus consists of three papers, English, General Knowledge, and Elementary Mathematics. All these three papers are mandatory for the Indian Military Academy, Indian Naval Academy, and Air Force Academy. While the Officers’ Training Academy has only two papers, English, and General Knowledge. The CDS 1 2024 written exam will take place in offline mode consisting of only objective-type questions. Read the below sections to understand the CDS 1 2024 syllabus and exam pattern in detail.

CDS-1 2024 English Syllabus

=> Reading Comprehension

=> Fill in the Blanks

=> Sentence Rearrangement

=> Grammar and Vocabulary

=> Synonyms and Antonyms

=> Idioms and Phrases

=> Spotting the Errors

=> Sentence Sequencing

=> One-word substitutions

=> Para Jumbles

General Knowledge Syllabus for CDS-1 2024

=> Important National & International Happenings

=> Personalities in News

=> General Science

=> Economics

=> History of India

=> Games and Sports

=> Awards and Honors

=> Geography

=> Political Science

=> Indian Constitution

=> Everyday Observation

=> Scientific Discoveries

=> Current Affairs

=> Heritage and Culture

=> UN & International Organizations

CDS-1 2024 Elementary Mathematics Syllabus

=> Algebra

=> H.C.F. and L.C.M.

=> Theory of Polynomials

=> Quadratic Equations

=> Number System

=> Unitary Method

=> Time and Distance

=> Time and Work

=> Percentage

=> Simple & Compound Interest

=> Profit and Loss

=> Ratio and proportion

=> Trigonometry

=> Geometry

=> Mensuration

=> Statistics

Exam Pattern of CDS-1 2024 for IMA, INA, and AFA

If you wish to join IMA, INA, or AFA through CDS, you need to attempt all three papers. So, here you can get complete details on the CDS 1 2024 exam pattern for IMA, INA, and AFA.

Particulars	Details
Papers	Paper I – English Paper Paper II – General Knowledge Paper Paper III – Elementary Mathematics
Number of Questions	English- 120 Questions General Knowledge – 120 Questions Elementary Mathematics – 100 Questions
Maximum Marks	English – 100 Marks General Knowledge – 100 Marks Elementary Mathematics – 100 Marks
Time Duration	English – 2 Hours General Knowledge – 2 Hours Elementary Mathematics – 2 Hours
Exam Shift	First Shift – English Paper Second Shift – General Knowledge Paper Third Shift – Elementary Mathematics
Positive Marking	0.833 marks will be given for every correct answer in the English and General Knowledge papers. While in the Elementary Mathematics paper, 1 mark will be given for every correct answer.
Negative Marking	0.277 marks will be deducted for every wrong answer in the English and General Knowledge papers. While in the Elementary Mathematics paper, 0.33 marks will be deducted for every wrong answer.
Nature of Questions	Multiple-Choice Questions
Mode of Exam	Offline (OMR-Based)

CDS-1 2024 Exam Pattern for OTA

The OTA is a completely different concept in the CDS exam. Both male and female candidates can apply for OTA through the CDS exam. There are only two papers for OTA, one is English and the other one is General Knowledge paper. Check the CDS 1 2024 exam pattern for OTA in the following table.

Particulars	Details
Papers	Paper I – English Paper Paper II – General Knowledge Paper
Number of Questions	English – 120 Questions General Knowledge – 120 Questions
Maximum Marks	English – 100 Marks General Knowledge – 100 Marks
Time Duration	English – 2 Hours General Knowledge – 2 Hours
Exam Shift	First Shift – English Paper Second Shift – General Knowledge Paper
Positive Marking	0.833 for every correct answer
Negative Marking	0.277 for every wrong answer
Nature of Questions	Multiple-Choice Questions
Mode of Exam	Offline (OMR-Based)